U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) recently met with local nonprofit organizations to gauge how those organizations would be affected by a federal spending freeze.
On Feb. 3, U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan extended her order to delay the spending freeze, which was originally scheduled to take effect on Jan. 28. However, President Donald Trump’s administration maintains that a revised spending freeze is in the works.
During his Feb. 3 meeting with Hassan, Henry Och, president and CEO of Harbor Care, said there are three major programs that his organization offers: housing, healthcare and veteran services.
Harbor Care’s housing program has 1,000 homes throughout New Hampshire and was recently selected for a series of federal grants totalling $2.6 million. Regarding the healthcare program, Och said Harbor Care’s healthcare centers have significantly lower costs than hospitals. In addition, the veteran services program strives to provide veterans with housing, mental health services and suicide prevention.
“Without federal funding, all that work stops,” said Och.
Hassan said the federal budget for fiscal year 2025 was passed by Congress and signed into law by then-President Joe Biden. Therefore, budgetary spending can only be authorized by Congress, not the president.
Hassan said she and her Democratic colleagues will continue to work to prevent a spending freeze.
“We’re working as hard as we can to push back,” she said. “When you freeze federal funding the ripple effect is huge. We’re going to continue to raise the alarm on this.”
Goodlander described Trump’s actions as “lawless and chaotic” during her Jan. 31 visit with the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley and Meals on Wheels of Hillsborough County.
“Real people right here in New Hampshire – from our most vulnerable youth to our most vulnerable seniors – are paying the price, that is unacceptable,” she said. “Thank you to the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley and Meals on Wheels of Hillsborough County for meeting with me and sharing how devastating a loss in federal funding would be in their efforts to serve those most in need. I will never stop fighting with every possible tool to deliver for New Hampshire.”
Executive Director Nicole Forsyth said she appreciated Goodlander’s understanding of the club’s vital role in the Souhegan Valley.
“The congresswoman offered encouragement to our staff while recognizing the importance of community collaboration and the impact that the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley has on the youth and families it serves,” said Forsyth.
The club had been waiting for a $60,000 federal grant to continue its High Risk Youth Mentoring Project. However, the club has since been informed that those funds are on hold until further notice.
Jon Eriquezzo, president and CEO of Meals on Wheels of Hillsborough County, said 70 percent of the funding for his organization comes from Medicaid and the Older Americans Act.
“Social Isolation and Loneliness is described as the invisible epidemic because it is a significant threat to life that exists almost entirely behind closed doors. When people are young and able-bodied it is so easy to drive by doors in your neighborhood without thinking ‘why is that door never open?’ At Meals on Wheels of Hillsborough County, we pride ourselves in opening doors,” he said Jon Eriquezzo. “More than half of our participants report that their Meals on Wheels driver is the only person they see most weeks. These friendly visits are wellness checks that save lives and provide peace of mind to families.”
